Thursday, November 13, 2008

Stem Cell Snippets: Eggs to IP

The Price of Eggs – Singapore has made a move on the human-egg pricing front, providing cash for time and lost wages, something that CIRM does not permit on research that it funds. However, Jesse Reynolds of the Center for Genetics and Society in Oakland, Ca., does not believe Singapore's action provides much impetus for efforts to boost incentives for eggs for stem cell research. His reasoning? "The continued lack of success of cloning-based stem cell research, which would use the eggs, and the frequent strides in the alternative methods of cellular reprogramming." However, CIRM President Alan Trounson has warned that the shortage of human eggs is limiting research. Our opinion: If eggs have value, someone is going to pay for them – and maybe a lot -- whether they are in California, Singapore, Korea, China or Poland.

Business and CIRM
– The private sector is not giving up on CIRM despite the agency's rejection of all but one business grant application. Twenty-seven business filed letters of intent to apply for $60 million in translational research funding. Fifty-four applications came from non-profit enterprises. CIRM did not break that down between universities and research institutions. Ten grants are scheduled to be approved in April.

Stem Cell IP
– If you are interested in CIRM IP matters, you might want to keep an eye on next Tuesday's meeting of the agency's IP Task Force. The agenda calls only for consolidation of non-profit and for-profit rules, but the draft has not yet been posted on the agenda. It is a teleconference meeting with sites in San Francisco, Elk Grove and San Carlos, where the public can participate.

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